The chief executive of Sainsbury's has outlined ambitious growth plans for Argos as the company rolls out click and collect services at 100 convenience stores ahead of the critical Christmas trading period.

A year after Sainsbury's splashed out £1.4 billion to acquire Argos and Habitat owner Home Retail Group, Mike Coupe told the Press Association that the company's rapid expansion will help take the fight to rivals such as Amazon.

The launch of Argos click and collect in Sainsbury's convenience stores is part of a longer term plan to have 2,000 "points of presence" for the general goods retailer.

Mr Coupe said: "Customers are demanding more and more flexibility and more speed in terms of the way they shop with us.

"We would argue very strongly that with the 2,000 points of presence, the great Argos digital capability and the supply chain that backs that up - and the fact that those businesses have access to 27 million customers a week - it gives us a reasonably powerful combination to compete in future.

"But I don't pretend for a moment that Amazon and others aren't going to be significant competitors."

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The extended roll-out of click and collect, which will enable shoppers to pick up Argos and Tu clothing products at convenience stores, comes alongside an integration programme that has seen the expansion of Argos stores with Sainsbury's supermarkets.

Sainsbury's currently has 100 "stores within stores" and plans to increase that to 150 by Christmas as the battle for festive shoppers begins to pick up pace.

Mr Coupe added that he envisages a time when Sainsbury's, like Amazon, partners with independent retailers and uses them as delivery points for Argos goods.

"Over time you can imagine there might be different kinds of arrangements, with local community stores for instance as drop off points," he said.